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A review by emshawkes
The 24th Hour by James Patterson
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This it the 24th instalment of the Women’s Murder Club. I’d heard great things about the Women’s Murder Club but hadn’t yet read one so I was excited to read a copy.
The story opens with the four main players in the Women’s Murder Club celebrating with a meal out. A scream is heard from the second floor and Lyndsay goes upstairs to find a lady who has been sexually assaulted, and she points to the perpetrator.
The rest of the book is focused on Yuki’s trial to convict the rapist. Alongside that storyline are two others: a husband-wife murder and a cyber crime where a hospital’s computer system is being held hostage.
I thought the book worked as a standalone you didn’t need to have read the previous books as I got to know the main characters: Lyndsay, Claire, Yuki and Cindy, pretty quickly, however I found the three stories and multiple players hard to keep on top of at times. It was fast-paced the short chapters kept momentum when the story switched from one plotline to another.
I found the book underwhelming compared to what I expected from the popularity of the Women’s Murder Club series. The trial was my favourite plot, and I was looking forward to finding out how the victim with Dissociative Identity Disorder (formerly multiple personality disorder) would play out in court. However, I found the ending rushed and dissatisfying. Similarly, the cyber crime plot was solved through no effort of the Women’s Murder Club and felt rushed. The only plotline that felt like it was actually solved was the husband-wife murder of Jamie and Holly Fricke.
Based on this book I wouldn’t rush out to buy another Women’s Murder Club, but other reviews say that they were better at the start so I won’t write them off completely.
The story opens with the four main players in the Women’s Murder Club celebrating with a meal out. A scream is heard from the second floor and Lyndsay goes upstairs to find a lady who has been sexually assaulted, and she points to the perpetrator.
The rest of the book is focused on Yuki’s trial to convict the rapist. Alongside that storyline are two others: a husband-wife murder and a cyber crime where a hospital’s computer system is being held hostage.
I thought the book worked as a standalone you didn’t need to have read the previous books as I got to know the main characters: Lyndsay, Claire, Yuki and Cindy, pretty quickly, however I found the three stories and multiple players hard to keep on top of at times. It was fast-paced the short chapters kept momentum when the story switched from one plotline to another.
I found the book underwhelming compared to what I expected from the popularity of the Women’s Murder Club series. The trial was my favourite plot, and I was looking forward to finding out how the victim with Dissociative Identity Disorder (formerly multiple personality disorder) would play out in court. However, I found the ending rushed and dissatisfying. Similarly, the cyber crime plot was solved through no effort of the Women’s Murder Club and felt rushed. The only plotline that felt like it was actually solved was the husband-wife murder of Jamie and Holly Fricke.
Based on this book I wouldn’t rush out to buy another Women’s Murder Club, but other reviews say that they were better at the start so I won’t write them off completely.
Moderate: Sexual assault and Murder